Spots still up for grabs as Bok coach gives timeline for World Cup squad announcement

While he may have an idea of his core group for the Rugby World Cup, Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber insists the door is not shut on players hoping to play their way into national contention.

Fourteen frontline Springboks assembled in Cape Town on Sunday for a three-week "physical and rugby development" camp as the world champions stepped up preparations for the defence of their title in France later this year.

The camp, which runs until 10 March, is for players of national interest and those who have been on a break from the United Rugby Championship (URC).

While addressing reporters at the Cullinan Hotel in Cape Town on Wednesday, Nienaber stressed that the players in camp were there because the majority of them haven't had a break since before the 2021 British & Irish Lions series.

But he said the players in contention for the World Cup were "probably in and around 60".

"The biggest reason why these players are in this camp is because of the lack of [an off-season] and trying to manage the northern hemisphere club competition and a southern hemisphere international competition.

"The overarching reason for this camp is to manage the players' workload," said Nienaber.

With the World Cup set to start on 8 September, Nienaber said the Bok squad for the showpiece event won't be named before 1 August - the "deadline" set by World Rugby.

"We will stick to their (World Rugby's) protocol," Nienaber said, before adding that players could still force their way into the squad with standout performances.

"I think form can definitely [still] influence selection. I think if you looked at the squads that we selected in the bio-bubbles with Covid, and also the players that we used in the last year or two, you'll probably get an idea of who's